Fox Lake Snowshoe November 24, 2018

November is my favourite time of year to snowshoe into Fox Lake.  There is always an abundance of new untouched white gold.  The x-c ski trails are not set yet and there are no skiers to speak off. This means we can travel somewhat freely along certain sections of the route.  We can own the trails and own "our" lake.  I have snowshoed to Fox Lake many times and never once have we shared the lake with others.  Today was prime time to strap on our snowshoes and go on an adventure to Fox Lake.

On Friday I watched the snow fall continuously once it started.  That ignited my anticipation for a great day ahead.  This morning it was still snowing and the drive to meet my friends was a bit nerve racking.  Reports were saying it is not user friendly out there.  My anticipation for a great day was waining.  My friend who would be driving us to the trailhead was gung-ho and was saying let's go.  The closer we got to our start spot, the more my excitement grew.   This was our view as we moved up along the trail.   

view along the Fox Creek Trail

Fox Creek & Mount Fox

We arrived at the picnic table and took a break to snack.  

It was at this point where we met the first two skiers of the day.  

We had a pleasant chat and then we went on our way. 

We snowshoed for a few minutes after leaving the picnic table and then veered off at the pole spot.  We went up slope a bit and snowshoed through a different meadowy area than what I have done on prior trips here.  My gung-ho friend who earlier said let's go now once again said let's go this way and he was keen to break trail for us.  We arrived at the border.

sign pointing us in the right direction

We arrived at Fox Lake as clouds were dancing around and then lifting.  We found a spot to settle down to dine.  This was the view I had.  We were in the sun and happy to have no wind.  I donned all my layers so was quite comfortable.    

tea time

After lunch it was time to warm up again and burn off a little of our recent fuel intake.  

I always enjoy running in the snow.

I asked my friends if they would play with me and they were on board.  

my destination shot

feeling quite at home at Fox Lake

We expressed our love for this day!

 When all of the lake business was complete, we packed up and said so long.  

 the view back as we worked our way back to the kiosk

Instead of returning the way we came once we reached the kiosk and border we aimed straight.  By going straight through the opening we were following what we believed was the border between Alberta and British Columbia.  There were ribboned trees to follow and bushwhacking was necessary in spots.  This was a suggestion by my gung-ho friend and we became gung-ho too.  We followed along as once again he broke the trail for us.  There were a few signs along this opening and this is one of them.  Seeing one like this was a first for me.

We came out onto a trail then followed it to the hydroline and the arch way that welcomes you to the Elk Valley in British Columbia.  I was here many years ago, long before the arch was built.  It was a beautiful piece of art full of carvings.

 These are just a few of the carvings.

We still had a way to go and time was passing.  We followed the hydroline where we saw two more skiers.  That was it, we saw only four x-c skiers all day. The light at this time of day was pretty and this was an amazing view to finish up with before taking care of business and getting ourselves back to the car before dark.

The reasons listed at the beginning of my story for picking this time of year to snowshoe to Fox Lake all held true.  While the distance we traveled and the elevation we gained was not grand, I did end up feeling pleasantly depleted.  I secured some quiet moments during the drive home to remember how thankful I am for what I am able to experience in life.